Poor drain management irks Kodagu residents

When it rains, all the drains start overflowing in Kodagu. The encroachment of drains is one of the major problems faced by the district.

The drains are in poor condition in Madikeri, Somwarpet, Kushalnagar and Virajpet taluks. In fact, there are no proper drains in a majority of the locations in Madikeri town as well.

The majority of the drains in Kushalnagar town are allegedly encroached upon and there is a lack of maintenance of these drains.

Kushalnagar town has over 40 to 45 layouts. The sewage flows into the stormwater drains here.

The encroachment of drains has affected the free flow of water. As a result, the drains overflow and inundate the low-lying areas. A portion of Kushalnagar town had remained inundated following heavy rain two years ago.

The drains that pass through near Baichanahalli, Tavarekere, near Mariyamma Temple, Market and Sai Layout should have more than 5 feet width. But, owing to encroachments, the width of the drains have been reduced. As a result, sewage mixed rainwater enters the households when the region experiences copious rainfall, said residents.

There are 25 families residing in Loaders Colony in Sowarpet. Owing to improper drains, the families have been facing problems.

Due to the stagnant sewage water, the entire area reeks of a nauseating smell. Weeds have covered all over the Rajakaluve and the Town Panchayat has failed to repair it, alleged the residents.

Manjunath, a resident of Somwarpet, said, “Drains are flowing up to the doorstep of our houses. The nauseating smell has been causing inconvenience to us.”

Sampath, a resident of Sowarpet said, “The drains have been damaged in Loaders Colony. Now steps have been taken to repair it. The funds have been used only for concreting roads and the problems remain.”

The sewage that flows in a drain at Shivakeri enters Akkacchammana Kere. In spite of bringing the issue to the notice of the panchayat, no action has been taken so far.

The sewage water has been polluting lakes. Despite bringing the issue to the notice of the authorities, no steps have been initiated to plug the flow of sewage into water bodies, said local resident Srinivas.

There are no proper drains from Kaveri Kalyana Mantapa to Nehru Nagara in Somwarpet.

As a result, rainwater which flows on the road enters the houses.

There are no stormwater drains from Dakani Mohalla Junction to Sunkada Katte on the road leading to Siddapura.

Kushalnagar Town Panchayat chief officer Krishna Prasad said steps have been taken to maintain major drains in the town. The drain that passes through Sai Layout has been encroached upon.

An action plan for Rs 2 crore has been prepared to develop stormwater drains and it has been submitted to the government, he added.

Rasheed, a resident of Mogaravalli in Virajpet, said that though concrete roads have been laid, no steps have been taken to construct stormwater drains. As a result, rainwater enters into houses in some areas.

Virajpet Town Panchayat chief officer Chandrakumar said, “A survey on rajakaluve will be conducted to assess the encroachments.”